The Schoodic Institute located at Acadia National Park is recruiting 3 seasonal Forest Monitoring Technicians to be a part of a 4 person field crew that will be collecting forest health data in 17 National Parks throughout the Eastern US.
Job Title: Forest Monitoring Technician
Job Type: full-time, temporary position
Organization: Schoodic Institute
Location: Bar Harbor, ME (Field Station first 9 weeks), and Fredericksburg, VA (Field Station second 10 weeks)
Open Period: January 31-February 10, 2020
Vacancies: 3 crew members
Duration: 19 weeks mid May to September (exact dates TBD)
Compensation: $14-16/hour depending on experience
Job Description:
Incumbents will sample permanent forest plots as part of a long-term forest health monitoring program. At each plot, incumbents will collect data on forest structure and composition, tree regeneration, understory vegetation, coarse woody debris, and soil characteristics. For many of these plots, this will be the fourth survey in 15 years. Other duties may include pressing unknown plant specimens, equipment maintenance and repair, preparing soil samples for processing, and data entry.
The crew will work in 17 park sites from Virginia to Maine, starting with a week of training in Marsh-Billings-Rockefeller National Historical Park in Woodstock, VT. The first 4 weeks of the season will be spent sampling National Historic Parks in New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Massachusetts. The crew will then spend approximately 5 weeks sampling in Acadia National Park, and 8 weeks working in Mid-Atlantic parks located in Virginia and Pennsylvania, including a week in Assateague Island National Seashore. The crew will stay in park housing where available, and lodging may include hotels, historic buildings and cabins. While on travel, housing and meals stipends will be provided (~50% of position). While at the field station, park housing will be reserved, but employees must pay rent.
This is largely a field based position, and incumbents will be required to carry heavy field equipment (40+lbs), hike though rough terrain, learn and identify plants common to eastern forests, and work in all weather conditions. Incumbent may be exposed to deer ticks that carry Lyme disease, biting insects, poison ivy and dense brush.
More information about the NPS long-term forest monitoring programs and the parks involved can be found here:
Northeast Temperate Network: https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nps.gov%2Fim%2Fnetn%2Fforest-health.htm&data=02%7C01%7Cmadeline.hennessey%40uconn.edu%7C20e1c48272604892177f08d7a6ffefad%7C17f1a87e2a254eaab9df9d439034b080%7C0%7C0%7C637161490512925825&sdata=9nKOd5vg3cRZUsuHuQvx92%2F0DGmcuMKTe9lLuf%2FAue4%3D&reserved=0
Mid-Atlantic Network: https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.nps.gov%2Fim%2Fmidn%2Fforest-vegetation-coastal-plain-piedmont-parks.htm&data=02%7C01%7Cmadeline.hennessey%40uconn.edu%7C20e1c48272604892177f08d7a6ffefad%7C17f1a87e2a254eaab9df9d439034b080%7C0%7C0%7C637161490512925825&sdata=Yk22IyR4GQQebaVJ9BejDCMWTzkE2WETT4AEHy%2FQA%2B0%3D&reserved=0
For more information about the position and to apply, please view the announcement on the Schoodic Institute website:
https://na01.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fschoodicinstitute.org%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2020%2F01%2FForest_Monitoring_Technicians_job_description.pdf&data=02%7C01%7Cmadeline.hennessey%40uconn.edu%7C20e1c48272604892177f08d7a6ffefad%7C17f1a87e2a254eaab9df9d439034b080%7C0%7C0%7C637161490512925825&sdata=JzzmmX%2BE5vSczi7LYXmfFF4xjyXHvHv7KhiMFjACrHE%3D&reserved=0